A trip was organised on Friday the 12th of May for the pupils of 5th class to visit the RNLI Lifeboat Station in Rosses Point. There, the children were greeted by three lovely volunteers, Caroline, Liz and Edwardo, who taught them everything there is to know about the RNLI.
Founded in 1824, the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) is a charity whose volunteers save lives on inland waterways and at sea around the coasts of the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
The children learned how the RNLI rely completely on the selflessness of their volunteers and the kindness of charitable donations in order to keep their stations open and lifeboats in the water.
Whilst at the station, the children got a guided tour of the building, including that of the dressing room, where they saw the uniform (dry suits, life jackets and helmets) worn by the volunteers of the RNLI.
The class then got a wonderful opportunity to learn all about the Lifeboat, aptly named the Sheila and Dennis Tongue- the name of the couple whose kind donation allowed for the purchase of a lifeboat for the Rosses Point RNLI Station.
5th Class finally got an invaluable talk on the importance of water safety- how to recognise dangers at the beach and in the water.
Afterwards, the class enjoyed a trip to the beach where they played football and volleyball.
As a sincere thank you to those RNLI volunteers who not only give of their time to educate us, but also give of their time answering pagers to help people in need, 5th class will be organising a fundraising day in the coming weeks in aid of the RNLI.
